Do you ever, all of a sudden, feel embarrassed that you don't know more about grammar?
It happens to me all the time. This should be enough to get us by.
There are eight parts of speech.
Examples are not meant to be restricted to the categories they represent.
1. Nouns
It happens to me all the time. This should be enough to get us by.
There are eight parts of speech.
Examples are not meant to be restricted to the categories they represent.
1. Nouns
Proper (Vietnam, Betty Boop, Thursday) are specific people, places or things.
Common (country, cartoon, day) are general.
Concrete (opera, pho, mountain) can be physically sensed.
Abstract (unhappiness, memory, discrimination) cannot be physically sensed.
Countable (table, bugs, book) are countable.
Non-countable (rice, sunshine, paint) have no plural form.
Collective (association, class, herd) describe groups and take singular pronouns.
2. Pronouns
Subjective personal (I, you, she) are subjects.
Objective personal (me, him, it) are objects.
Possessive personal (mine, theirs, his) show ownership.
Demonstrative (those, that, this) identify.
Interrogative (whom, which, whatever) ask questions.
Relative (that, whoever, whichever) link phrases or clauses.
Indefinite (many, nobody, another) refer to something unspecified.
Reflexive (myself, himself, itself) refer back to the subject.
Intensive (myself, himself, itself) emphasize the antecedent (I myself never use these).
First person (I) speaker.
Second person (you) audience.
Third person (he, their) other.
3. Verbs
Transitive (stab, kiss, ate) take objects.
Intransitive (slept, walking, bleed) do not take objects.
Linking (be, appear, sounds) take complements.
Lexical (swim, sneeze, caress) are action verbs.
Auxiliary (be, do, have) are helping verbs.
Modal auxiliary (must, may, should) describe likelihood, obligation, etc.
Compound (were thrown, may see, should have been) have an auxiliary and a lexical verb.
4. Adverbs
Regular (very, sarcastically, hardly) modify verbs, adjectives, or adverbs.
Conjunctive (furthermore, therefore, indeed) join two clauses together.
5. Adjectives
Gradable (comfortable, hairy, long) can vary in intensity.
Non-gradable (impossible, pregnant, terrific) are more absolute.
Coordinate adjectives are two or more adjectives in a row modifying the same noun.
Restrictive order matters when used as coordinate adjectives; no commas are needed.
Non-restrictive order does not matter when used as coordinate adjectives; commas are needed.
Determiners (adjectives and conjunctions)
Articles (a, an, the) "a/an" are definite, and "the" is indefinite.
Demonstrative (these, what, that) identify.
Quantifiers (a few, all, many) describe about how many.
Numbers (five, a googol, half) describe exactly how many.
Possessive nouns (lady's, Godzilla's, pianists') show ownership.
Possessive pronouns (my, its, their) show ownership.
6. Conjunctions
Coordinating FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) join words, phrases, and clauses.
Subordinating (when, because, until) introduce dependent clauses.
Correlative (neither/nor, both/and, whether/or) require pairs.
7. Prepositions (past, from, within) link words.
8. Interjections (ouch, well, oh) convey emotion.
Verbals
Present participles (giving) are adjectives.
Past participles (given) are adjectives.
Gerunds (giving) are nouns.
Infinitives (to give) are nouns.
Verb tenses
Present simple I write occasionally.
Past simple I wrote a paper once.
Future simple I will write a check when I have the money.
Present progressive I am writing a blog post.
Past progressive I was writing out a piano assignment the other day.
Future progressive I will be writing more piano assignments soon.
Present perfect I have written lots of terrible things.
Past perfect I had written the break up letter by the time we met up for dinner.
Future perfect I will have written the article by the deadline.
Present perfect progressive I have been writing about grammar.
Past perfect progressive I had been writing about strawberries.
Future perfect progressive I will have been writing about my piano for nearly a year.
Sentences have subjects and predicates, both of which can be simple or compound.
(He ate the cake and drank the gasoline.)
Subjects are what sentences are about.
(He - simple subject)
Predicates are everything else, which are verbs and compliments.
(ate the cake and drank the gasoline - compound predicate)
Declarative sentences are what they sound like.
Interrogative sentences ask questions.
Rhetorical questions are not meant to be answered.
Imperative sentences are commands.
Exclamatory sentences end in an exclamation mark.
Simple sentences contain only one clause.
Compound sentences contain two or more independent clauses.
Complex sentences contain an independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
Compound-Complex sentences contain a compound sentence and at least one dependent clause.
Loose sentences place the point of the sentence at the beginning.
(I love coming home to a nicely cooked meal, comfortable couch, and a few episodes of Betty Boop.)
Periodic sentences place the point of the sentence at the end.
(After a long day of parent phone calls, teaching, and wading through traffic, I finally arrived home.)
Phrases are units of words without both a subject and a predicate. They need no internal punctuation.
Prepositional phrases (into the tree) begin with a preposition.
Determiner phrases (five peacocks) begin with a determiner.
Verb phrases (will set it on fire tomorrow) act as verbs.
Adjective phrases (at the end of the rainbow) act as adjectives.
Adverb phrases (after midnight) act as adverbs.
Noun phrases (the fat, yellow worms) act as nouns.
Gerund phrases (falling down the chimney) are noun phrases.
Infinitive phrases (to be philandering about) are noun phrases.
Clauses are units of words with both a subject and a predicate. They also need no internal punctuation.
Independent clauses (he lost a tooth) are complete sentences.
Dependent/Subordinate clauses (that you can read below) are not complete sentences.
Restrictive clauses (that) are separated by commas.
Non-restrictive clauses (which) are not separated by commas.
Noun clauses (what they ate) are dependent clauses that act as nouns.
Adjectives clauses (that I stole) are dependent clauses that act as adjectives.
Adverb clauses (when the fat lady sings) are dependent clauses that act as adverbs.
Objects are what verbs act upon, and can be direct or indirect.
(I gave him poison) "poison" is the direct object, and "him" is the indirect object.
Subject complements follow linking verbs and can be nouns or adjectives.
(I used to be a piano teacher.)
Object complements follow linking verbs and can be nouns or adjectives.
(I saw him picking his nose.)
Appositives (Ivan the terrible) are like subject complements without a linking verb.
Expletives (there, here, or it) are pronouns that begin clauses with no antecedent.
Modifiers describe parts of the sentence.
They can be phrases, clauses, adjectives, or adverbs.
Comparative adjectives and adverbs compare two things.
Superlative adjectives and adverbs compare more than two things.
Mood
Indicative (one plus one is three) is factual.
Imperative (grow up) is commanding.
Present subjunctive (that you don't think) expresses demands or desires.
Past subjunctive (if you didn't breathe) describes hypothetical situations.
Common (country, cartoon, day) are general.
Concrete (opera, pho, mountain) can be physically sensed.
Abstract (unhappiness, memory, discrimination) cannot be physically sensed.
Countable (table, bugs, book) are countable.
Non-countable (rice, sunshine, paint) have no plural form.
Collective (association, class, herd) describe groups and take singular pronouns.
2. Pronouns
Subjective personal (I, you, she) are subjects.
Objective personal (me, him, it) are objects.
Possessive personal (mine, theirs, his) show ownership.
Demonstrative (those, that, this) identify.
Interrogative (whom, which, whatever) ask questions.
Relative (that, whoever, whichever) link phrases or clauses.
Indefinite (many, nobody, another) refer to something unspecified.
Reflexive (myself, himself, itself) refer back to the subject.
Intensive (myself, himself, itself) emphasize the antecedent (I myself never use these).
First person (I) speaker.
Second person (you) audience.
Third person (he, their) other.
3. Verbs
Transitive (stab, kiss, ate) take objects.
Intransitive (slept, walking, bleed) do not take objects.
Linking (be, appear, sounds) take complements.
Lexical (swim, sneeze, caress) are action verbs.
Auxiliary (be, do, have) are helping verbs.
Modal auxiliary (must, may, should) describe likelihood, obligation, etc.
Compound (were thrown, may see, should have been) have an auxiliary and a lexical verb.
4. Adverbs
Regular (very, sarcastically, hardly) modify verbs, adjectives, or adverbs.
Conjunctive (furthermore, therefore, indeed) join two clauses together.
5. Adjectives
Gradable (comfortable, hairy, long) can vary in intensity.
Non-gradable (impossible, pregnant, terrific) are more absolute.
Coordinate adjectives are two or more adjectives in a row modifying the same noun.
Restrictive order matters when used as coordinate adjectives; no commas are needed.
Non-restrictive order does not matter when used as coordinate adjectives; commas are needed.
Determiners (adjectives and conjunctions)
Articles (a, an, the) "a/an" are definite, and "the" is indefinite.
Demonstrative (these, what, that) identify.
Quantifiers (a few, all, many) describe about how many.
Numbers (five, a googol, half) describe exactly how many.
Possessive nouns (lady's, Godzilla's, pianists') show ownership.
Possessive pronouns (my, its, their) show ownership.
6. Conjunctions
Coordinating FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) join words, phrases, and clauses.
Subordinating (when, because, until) introduce dependent clauses.
Correlative (neither/nor, both/and, whether/or) require pairs.
7. Prepositions (past, from, within) link words.
8. Interjections (ouch, well, oh) convey emotion.
Verbals
Present participles (giving) are adjectives.
Past participles (given) are adjectives.
Gerunds (giving) are nouns.
Infinitives (to give) are nouns.
Verb tenses
Present simple I write occasionally.
Past simple I wrote a paper once.
Future simple I will write a check when I have the money.
Present progressive I am writing a blog post.
Past progressive I was writing out a piano assignment the other day.
Future progressive I will be writing more piano assignments soon.
Present perfect I have written lots of terrible things.
Past perfect I had written the break up letter by the time we met up for dinner.
Future perfect I will have written the article by the deadline.
Present perfect progressive I have been writing about grammar.
Past perfect progressive I had been writing about strawberries.
Future perfect progressive I will have been writing about my piano for nearly a year.
Sentences have subjects and predicates, both of which can be simple or compound.
(He ate the cake and drank the gasoline.)
Subjects are what sentences are about.
(He - simple subject)
Predicates are everything else, which are verbs and compliments.
(ate the cake and drank the gasoline - compound predicate)
Declarative sentences are what they sound like.
Interrogative sentences ask questions.
Rhetorical questions are not meant to be answered.
Imperative sentences are commands.
Exclamatory sentences end in an exclamation mark.
Simple sentences contain only one clause.
Compound sentences contain two or more independent clauses.
Complex sentences contain an independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
Compound-Complex sentences contain a compound sentence and at least one dependent clause.
Loose sentences place the point of the sentence at the beginning.
(I love coming home to a nicely cooked meal, comfortable couch, and a few episodes of Betty Boop.)
Periodic sentences place the point of the sentence at the end.
(After a long day of parent phone calls, teaching, and wading through traffic, I finally arrived home.)
Phrases are units of words without both a subject and a predicate. They need no internal punctuation.
Prepositional phrases (into the tree) begin with a preposition.
Determiner phrases (five peacocks) begin with a determiner.
Verb phrases (will set it on fire tomorrow) act as verbs.
Adjective phrases (at the end of the rainbow) act as adjectives.
Adverb phrases (after midnight) act as adverbs.
Noun phrases (the fat, yellow worms) act as nouns.
Gerund phrases (falling down the chimney) are noun phrases.
Infinitive phrases (to be philandering about) are noun phrases.
Clauses are units of words with both a subject and a predicate. They also need no internal punctuation.
Independent clauses (he lost a tooth) are complete sentences.
Dependent/Subordinate clauses (that you can read below) are not complete sentences.
Restrictive clauses (that) are separated by commas.
Non-restrictive clauses (which) are not separated by commas.
Noun clauses (what they ate) are dependent clauses that act as nouns.
Adjectives clauses (that I stole) are dependent clauses that act as adjectives.
Adverb clauses (when the fat lady sings) are dependent clauses that act as adverbs.
Objects are what verbs act upon, and can be direct or indirect.
(I gave him poison) "poison" is the direct object, and "him" is the indirect object.
Subject complements follow linking verbs and can be nouns or adjectives.
(I used to be a piano teacher.)
Object complements follow linking verbs and can be nouns or adjectives.
(I saw him picking his nose.)
Appositives (Ivan the terrible) are like subject complements without a linking verb.
Expletives (there, here, or it) are pronouns that begin clauses with no antecedent.
Modifiers describe parts of the sentence.
They can be phrases, clauses, adjectives, or adverbs.
Comparative adjectives and adverbs compare two things.
Superlative adjectives and adverbs compare more than two things.
Mood
Indicative (one plus one is three) is factual.
Imperative (grow up) is commanding.
Present subjunctive (that you don't think) expresses demands or desires.
Past subjunctive (if you didn't breathe) describes hypothetical situations.
